Charles Dilke | |
|---|---|
 Image from an Ogden's Cigarette Card | |
| Born | 4 September 1843 |
| Died | 26 January 1911 (aged 67) Chelsea, London, United Kingdom |
| Resting place | Kensal Green Cemetery |
| Nationality | British |
| Education | Trinity Hall, Cambridge |
| Known for | Liberal Party MP President of the Local Government Board, 1882–1885 |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Spouse(s) | Katherine Mary Eliza Sheil (1842–1874) Emilia Strong (1840–1904) |
Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke, 2nd Baronet PC (4 September 1843 – 26 January 1911) was an English Liberal and Radical politician. A republican in the early 1870s, he later became a leader in the radical challenge to Whig control of the Liberal Party, making a number of important contributions, including in the legislation increasing democracy in 1883–1885, his support of the growing labour and feminist movements, and his prolific writings on international affairs.
Touted as a future prime minister, his aspirations to higher political office were effectively terminated in 1885 after a notorious and well-publicised divorce case.
His disgrace, and the alignment of Joseph Chamberlain with the Conservatives, both greatly weakened the radical cause.[1]
- ^ David Nicholls, The Lost Prime Minister (1995)